In an industry first, Chopard commits to using only ethical gold for all jewellery

Baselworld 2018 has officially come to a close, and amongst all the extraordinary unveilings of the latest and finest novelties, one luxury brand gave an important announcement that would possibly set out a brand new standard for the future of both jewellery and watch making.

A first in the industry, Chopard has just pledged its commitment to use 100% ethical gold for all its jewellery and watch creations moving forward, promising that by July 2018, every piece of gold sourced will either be acquired from sustainable sources or verified as having met international best practice environmental and social standards. In order to be qualified as ‘ethical gold’, the gold extracted must come from two traceable methods — the first is from small-scale mines participating in the Swiss Better Gold Association, Fairmined and Fairtrade schemes, and the second is from the RJC Chain of Custody — all in the effort to guarantee that every single piece of gold is produced in accordance with the highest social, environmental and ethical standards.

“As a family run business, ethics have always been an important part of our family philosophy. Naturally, we have always put ethics at the heart of the values of Chopard. True luxury comes only when you know the handprint of your supply chain and I am very proud to share the stories behind each beautiful piece to our customers and know they will wear these stories with pride,” Chopard’s co-president and creative director, Caroline Scheufele, said at a press conference at Baselworld.

The idea, of course, didn’t happen overnight. Sustainability has always been a core value at Chopard, and the brand has been working on the meaningful journey for the past 30 years. From creating a rare in-house gold foundry as early as 1978, to investing in mastering the skills of high jewellery artisans and expert watchmakers internally, Chopard has successfully developed a vertically integrated in-house production, which makes it possible to apply its commitment to using only ethical gold across its entire range — a process five years in the making. 

We know it’s still a long way to go before sustainability becomes a worldwide standard across all industries, but we are nonetheless very excited to see Chopard shining an optimistic light towards a brighter future for all.